The present invention relates to the presentation of channel, program, and broadcast information for a multiple channel television system.
Television broadcasting technology has improved tremendously since its inception. Today, television signals are broadcasted on the airwaves through cables and via satellite. The number of stations accessible today has increased from one to hundreds of stations. To select a program to view, many viewers simply xe2x80x9cchannel surfxe2x80x9d until they find a channel that has a desirable program. Channel surfing refers to the process of using the channel xe2x80x9c+xe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cxe2x88x92xe2x80x9d key to sequentially view each channel. Although some viewers find channel surfing among hundreds of stations enjoyable, most viewers prefer a more direct method for selecting a program to view.
Some systems, for example, the RCA Direct Satellite System(trademark) or DSS(trademark) (Direct Satellite System and DSS are trademarks of Hughes Communications, a division of General Motors Corp.), provides a television channel selection guide which displays a listing of the channels typically in numeric order and the titles of the programs broadcasted or to be broadcasted on the channels. A simplified block diagram of such a guide is illustrated in FIG. 1. The viewer or user of the system may then select the channel by entering in the number or selecting the device. The system responds by removing the guide displayed and tuning to the station selected and displaying the broadcasting signals of the station.
This system has a number of drawbacks. The guide provides only the title of the program. To get additional information, such as a written description of the program, the user must select an information button which responds by bringing up a second layer of the menu having the program description. Thus, as the number of stations increase, the efficiency of reviewing programs and program descriptions decreases. Furthermore, many viewers prefer to view the actual broadcast before determining whether to select that station to watch. Therefore, in the RCA system, the user has to select each station to view, and subsequently go back to the channel guide in order to view program titles on other channels. Of course, the user can always channel surf by skipping from channel to channel in sequence using the channel xe2x80x9c+xe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cxe2x88x92xe2x80x9d buttons.
Typical television viewers will have favorite stations which they like to watch. The RCA system provides a channel skip function in which a viewer or user of the system can designate those channels that they prefer to view by selecting those channels from a displayed list of channels. Thereafter, using the channel xe2x80x9c+xe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cxe2x88x92xe2x80x9d buttons, the user can sequentially view those selected channels.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for selection of programs on a multiple station television system.
Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide both broadcast signals and channel data to a viewer to enable the user to select a program to view without requiring the user to maneuver through multiple levels of menus.
In the method and apparatus of the present invention an innovative but easy to use on-line guide is provided to provide the user of the system a wealth of information in a simple format that is easy to understand. Furthermore, the guide enables the user to easily select a particular program to watch. In particular, when the guide is presented to the user, the guide covers only a portion of the actual television screen or display. The remaining portion of the television screen continues to broadcast the currently selected program. As a user scans through the guide and moves the pointer from one station to another, the system responds by automatically tuning to the broadcast pointed to by the pointer and provides the audio and displays the video in the portion of the screen not covered by the guide. Thus, the user can easily get an idea of the broadcast on a particular station without exiting the guide and without expressly selecting a particular channel.
Furthermore, in one embodiment a written description of the program currently broadcasted on a station that the cursor currently points to is also shown. Thus, the user is provided the audio and video of a particular program as well as a written description of the program and the ability to easily preview another station broadcasting another program simply by moving the pointer. Once the user determines that a particular station is to be viewed, the user simply indicates selection by depressing the corresponding key on the receiver or remote control device which then functions to remove the guide. If the viewer exits the guide without selection of a station, the system automatically tunes back to the station that the system was tuned to at the time the guide was entered.
In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the system provides an innovative mechanism to enable the user to scan program information of channels that the user has designated as his favorite channels. A button is provided that is designated as xe2x80x9cfavoritexe2x80x9d. When the user is in a broadcast guide and selects the button, the system responds by displaying program information regarding the favorite stations at the top of the guide. Thus, the user will see at the top of the list the current programming with respect to his favorite stations, followed by program information for the remaining stations.